Malaysia has highest number of damaged smartphones in use: Otterbox study

By Digital News Asia November 13, 2015

75% of Malaysian smartphone usres damaged their devices almost 3 times in past 5 years
21% admitted their phones are 'badly damaged', but majority won't fix cracked screens due to high repair cost

SMARTPHONE users in Malaysia don’t seem like a careful bunch. A third of Malaysians are likely to have damaged their smartphone within 3 months of owning it.

A survey sponsored by US smartphone accessories company Otterbox Inc and independently conducted by ABN Impact in August 2015 showed that 75% of Malaysian smartphone users have damaged their devices almost 3 times in the past 5 years.

The degree of the impairment can range from minor scratches and scuffs to more serious issues like screen cracks and water damage.

Among all the four countries surveyed, including Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, Malaysia has the highest number of damaged phones in the market, considering the total market of 10 million smartphone users and 140% penetration rate.

However, percentage-wise, Hong Kong takes the crown with 83% of smartphone users having damaged their devices over 3.3 times in the past 5 years.

In contrast, only 65% of Singaporeans and 63% of Taiwanese users have caused physical harm to their mobiles within the same period.

When it comes to the severity of the damage, two-tenths of Malaysian owners admitted that their phones are ‘badly damaged’.

Almost half of them had their devices wrecked at work, while a third of them said the incidents occurred when they were out walking about.

A fifth of the 500 Malaysian respondents admitted to not having any form of protection for their phones, such as screen protectors or cases, when the phones were harmed.

Otterbox’s Asia Pacific managing director Steve Nisbet said in a statement that the company embarked on the survey to better understand the habits of smartphone owners in the region, and their attitudes towards damage on their smartphones.

“It makes perfect sense to take every measure to protect it and the data it contains,” he said, referring to the contact numbers, work e-mails and pictures stored in smartphones.

Unfortunately, only about half of the respondents felt the need to purchase a protective case for their device. But among those who do, are willing to pay between RM42 and RM250 for a case.

Still, 68% of Malaysians aren’t bothered by cracked screens on their devices as long as the damage doesn’t affect the phone’s performance. At least a quarter of them say the high repair costs, at an average of RM500, are a deterrent factor to fix their phones.

For more insights on respondents from Malaysia, see the infographic below.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s survey results, released earlier in September this year, was reported here.